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Belcher v. T. Rowe Price Foundation Inc.3/25/1993
as deafening; it was if a bomb had exploded. The lights in the office went out; pipes and wires were ripped apart; debris sifted over her and her surroundings; concrete dust went down her throat. "I couldn't move. I could not get up to move out of the way." Her employer immediately sought trauma counselling for her. The counselling proved to be ineffective. She "suffered sleep disturbances, nightmares, heart palpitations, chest pain, and headaches as a result of the occurrence." She came under the care of a psychiatrist, Alan H. Peck, M.D., for "evaluation and treatments for the emotional/mental trauma suffered as a result of this injury, this accident." She saw him some twenty-two times. Dr. Peck's reports were introduced into evidence at the hearing. His initial report, under date of 8 May 1991 included a history of the accident. When the beam fell
he was frozen in fear, did not know what had happened and wondered if it had been a bomb. She was quite shaken. She seemed to have had some amnesia for the next several hours but was told that she was shaking, chain smoking and holding onto the walls. She was, at that point, quite cold and may have been in shock. Concrete pieces were all over her bodice. There are still some nuggets present on her desk. She went home early
that day, quite upset, could not sleep, and ironed the entire night. She returned to work the next day and found she could not look up at the building although she did enter it and try to do her job . She has had serious emotional problems since this incident which have been quite bothersome for her. Prior to the incident she saw herself as a very solid woman in control who enjoyed the ability to have some say over her life and was proud of her work history particularly at the T. Rowe Price Company. She has raised three children and always felt that she could take care of whatever came her way. Now she is upset over the fact that she is unsure and her chest constantly hurts as does her shoulder. Headaches occur and she often has dry mouth. She is fearful of a heart attack. She feels like she may explode. She has panic attacks at work and sometimes has to leave the area. She is fearful that she may not be able to return. She has had ongoing nightmares, waking up screaming several times and, in each nightmare, she herself has been killed. She finds she now is easily startled and has become quite irritable with loved ones particularly her children which bothers her. She has had some weight gain, a loss of senses and, at times feels "as if she is dead".
Dr. Peck in his last report before the hearing, stated that he had first seen her "for symptoms of a Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as a result of a work related incident. . . ." He said:
In addition to some physical problems, the most important aspect has been the overwhelming psychological problems for Miss Belcher.
He opined that Belcher "suffers a Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result of this incident."
He concluded:
According to the Guides of the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment, 3rd Edition of the American Medical Association, Miss Belcher suffers a Class 3 impairment or moderate impairment where "impairment level are incompatible
with some but not all useful function," or a 40% psychiatric disability as a result of this incident.
There was no evidence that Belcher had received treatment for any purely physical condition, or for any of her physical manifestations.
The Commission issued an order which set out that a hearing had been held on the following issues:
1. Did the employee sustain an accidental personal injury arising out o
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Maryland Personal Injury Attorneys
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